Injuries to blood vessels has the potential to be the most common due to the large amount of vessels in the thoracic cavity. Spinal cord injury is possible, but very rare, and there is the chance of damage to the dura as well.
The danger with any spinal work is swelling. Pressure on the spine can damage function of the body whose nerves extend bejond the pressure point. Injuries casued by accident or surgery all casue swelling. You doctor will monitor your risk for swelling very closely
As in most surgeries the main risk are anesthetic problems like aspiration, respiratory arrest and hypotension. The disc surgery can cause a paralysis (very rare) if the nerve gets damaged.
collapse of lung
pleural effusion (excess fluid in the pleural cavity)
pneumonia
neuralgia (sharp pain along the nerves in the area)
disc herniation
hemothorax (blood in the pleural cavity)
infection
neurological deficit
